{ "id": "R46266", "type": "CRS Report", "typeId": "REPORTS", "number": "R46266", "active": true, "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "versions": [ { "source": "EveryCRSReport.com", "id": 619514, "date": "2020-03-12", "retrieved": "2020-03-13T13:00:40.755933", "title": "The Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund: Reauthorization Issues in the 116th Congress", "summary": "Coal mining and production in the United States during the 20th century contributed to the nation meeting its energy requirements and left a legacy of unreclaimed lands. Title IV of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA, P.L. 95-87) established the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) administers grants from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund to eligible states and tribes to reclaim affected lands and waters resulting from coal mining sites abandoned or otherwise left unreclaimed prior to the enactment of SMCRA. \nTitle IV of SMCRA authorized the collection of fees on the production of coal, which are credited to the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund. The use of this funding is limited to the reclamation of coal mining sites abandoned or unreclaimed as of August 3, 1977 (the date of SMCRA enactment). Title V of SMCRA authorized the regulation of coal mining sites operating after the law\u2019s enactment. Coal mining sites regulated under Title V are ineligible for grants from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund. \nThe balance of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund is provided by fees collected from coal mining operators based on the volume or value of coal produced, whichever is less. The coal reclamation fee collection authorization in Title IV expires at the end of FY2021. If Congress does not reauthorize the collection of reclamation fees, SMCRA directs the remaining balance of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund to be distributed among states and tribes receiving grants from the fund based on the FY2022 grant amounts. The FY2022 grant amounts would depend on the fees collected in FY2021, and payments from the fund would begin in FY2023, continuing annually until the balance has been expended. As of November 11, 2018, OSMRE reported that the unappropriated balance of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund was approximately $2.3 billion. Reclamation grants to eligible states and tribes receiving grants from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund would continue for some years until the balance is expended if coal reclamation fees are not reauthorized.\nThe balance of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund is several times less than the estimated unfunded reclamation costs. OSMRE recently reported estimates of the unfunded reclamation costs as $12.4 billion. Congress may consider whether and how to fund the remaining unfunded coal reclamation needs. If the fees are reauthorized, the adequacy of those receipts to pay the remaining unfunded reclamation needs would depend in part on decisions made by Congress (e.g., source of funds, duration of the fee extension, and fee rate). Additional factors include the status of domestic coal production, upon which the fees are based, and the potential emergence of additional reclamation needs. As introduced, H.R. 4248 and S. 1193 would amend SMCRA to extend the fee collection authorization at the current fee rates until September 30, 2036. \nSMCRA also authorizes federal financial assistance to United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) health and pension benefit plans for retired coal miners and family members who are eligible to be covered under those plans. Two sources of federal financial assistance to UMWA plans include interest transfers from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund and supplemental payments from the General Fund of the U.S. Treasury. Should Congress not reauthorize the coal reclamation fees, as the balance from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund is paid down, the interest transfers from the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund would make a relatively smaller contribution to the UMWA plans, increasing the reliance on General Fund payments for these plans. \nIn the 116th Congress, House and Senate versions of the RECLAIM Act (H.R. 2156 and S. 1232) would authorize $1 billion over five years from the unappropriated balance of the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund for the reclamation of abandoned coal mining sites as a means of facilitating economic and community development in coal production states. 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